Buttered Popcorn: Buzzmans Movie Review Thread

[SethMode]

This man writes the truth.

A person who likes the movie should read the book? Man, who would have thought?

 

[Buzzman]

Side Effects (2013)

I watched the trailer to Side Effects after seeing the movie in theaters and come away extremely satisfied I took that route. You see the trailer paints an entirely different story than the one you get. Huge chunks of story are missing and the clips they choose to order in the sequence they sow it together make it seem like this murder mystery and a who-done-it kind of film. While it may begin like that, it weaves itself into a thriller of twists and turns that keep your mind running with thought about how they are going to keep going rather than the endgame of the central mystery.

The film begins with a slow pan through the window of an apartment building. There is blood on the ground; something bad has happened. Then time moves backwards and you watch how that comes to be. It’s a ploy that is used plenty of times, and a lot of times it can become frustrating because we don’t want to see what happened before it, we want to see what happens next. The film actually seems to know that and doesn’t waste a whole lot of time getting to that point; that comes before the halfway mark. In this case though, both aprts of the climax work extremely well, keep you interested, and provide you with their own sets of thrills and twists that work both indidvually and as a whole story. I am going to keep from saying a whole lot not to ruin anything, but it’s best to go in blind as it’s a very smart thriller that seems out of place in the month of February.

It’s strange to think that you can already have a career defining role so early in your career, but it’s hard to shake Lisbeth Salander out of your head whenever you see her on screen. It’s a role that could follow her rest of her career, but with a few more turns like she does in Side Effects and the mold can be broken. She’s excellent here portraying a depressed, lost, broken young woman being zombified due to circumstance. She can become a character and do things many her age simply cannot. She doesn’t need dialogue or situational events to act; she can simply look around a room and show you herself. Its going to be great watching her for the next twenty years. I’ve never been anxious to see Jude Law, but I have liked him more than a few times, and here is no different. He gives you solid work and helps makes the transition of characters into the film much easier with his sympathetic turn as a bewildered doctor on the wrong side of an argument. Side characters such as Tatum and Jones provide solid support that help form a very good ensemble.

If you haven’t had the chance to see Side Effects, try and do so. It doesn’t do ground breaking work, but its does everything well. Its only real flaw is the constant mirage of an ending that becomes a bit repetitive, yet still sufficient. If there ever was a film to go in blind, this is the one. If not, expect a different film than the one the trailer sold to you. It might be one of the curious cases that helps benefit the viewer. If this indeed ends up being one of Soderbergh’s last films, we will be losing a good director who seems to just be hitting in prime as a director. Such a waste to see him walk away. I’ll miss seeing the films he has brought lately. They have all varied in quality, but they have been good regardless and all brought something to new rather than falling back on familiar ground. Nice little Swan Song for him.


Overall Score: 8/10

 

[Buzzman]

Identity Thief (2013)

2013 is going to be a huge year for Melissa McCarthy. Identity Thief has already proven to be a monster hit for her, turning a profit and a sequel reportedly in the works all before its theater run has ended. She also as The Heat coming up and when you combine her with Sandra Bullock, the same audience is going to eat that right up. More people like Bullock than Bateman. Sorry to say it, but it’s true. Now I haven’t seen The Heat yet, but all indications seem to be that these two roles are going to be one in the same, and if that becomes true, that’s disappointing. That’s because she is just fucking brutal to watch when she’s coasting. Everything she does, says, and appears to be all are repetitive jokes we’ve already seen her do, to the point where she becomes unlikeable.

It really isn’t all on her to blame. The movie as a whole is just terrible. The jokes are stale, if you want to even call them jokes; is punching someone in the throat 7-8 times throughout the film supposed to be funny? The entire premise is composed in Hollywood world. The sequence of events that happen in this film would never happen in real life. Identity Theft is very fixable, cops aren’t going to be as dumb as they are in here, and gangsters and bounty hunters aren’t going to exist, let alone be world class super criminals with super-physic abilities. None of it feels like any effort was put into it. Things that played for laughs are so poorly done; you cannot process it to even have a laugh of it. It’s just so fucking bad. What a miserable movie experience.

W all know this was a McCarthy vehicle, but Jason Batemen happens to be the star of the film. I don’t know what goes through his mind when he takes on so many stupid roles. Maybe he has some backdoor motivations, but I truly believe he had to carry this himself, it would have been a box office disaster as well. He needs to be smarter, because he can be a very funny dude when he is allowed to be. You’ll see some glorified cameos ranging from Mike from Breaking Bad, Takers TI , and the always awful Robert Patrick but none of them amount to anything but more stupidity. About the only thing positive that came out of this whole experience was I got to see Amanda Peet on screen for a few minutes. Always love seeing her.

I look at the rotten tomatoes score to the film of Identity Thief and I see a 24%. I think to myself and have to wonder how in the hell did that many people give the film a fresh rating. It has no right being above a 10% on its kindest day. At no point does Identity Thief try and become something other than lazy dogshit that coasts on by with some of the worst kinds of material I’ve seen for a comedy. It didn’t take long but we have found an almost guaranteed candidate for the worst film of the year already. Last year I gave Ghost Rider 2 and Gone both zeros; had Identity Thief came out last year, it would’ve been worse than the both of them. I think that can all but sum up my feelings on this piece of garbage.

Overall Score: 0/10

 

[Buzzman]

21 and Over (2013)

At times you will not enjoy 21 and Over. It is a pretty lazily written and directed film that is a bit all over the place, full of missed punch lines, one dimensional characters, and some head-scratching sequence of events. That was not to be unexpected when you view the talent behind the camera, but it still renders it a disappointing watch because you saw a good movie in the film, but they just didn’t capitalize upon it enough. You’ll find that you enjoy the characters in the movie, but not the story they have to tell.

One of the only good qualities of the plot is they take no time to jump into the night of drinking and get the shenanigans rolling. After that its mostly downhill because so many irritating things happen. People don’t feel pain, the campus must be the size of a football field because character run-ins happen far too often to be random, and minor twists are ones that make very little sense. Like I said, it is a mess. The fact that the whole movie is trying to find the house of the passed out Asian character that is with them the entire time speaks to its quality, though they at least tried to make you enjoy the characters along the way. There are moments when the film steps off the comedic ramblings and attempts to have some real bromance between them all. On lessons of growing up, moving on, and living in the now. Those scenes are few in far between, but you can see how the movie could have been better if they focused more on those times, but it was far too bent on having one crazy night to think anything more of it.

If you’ve seen Pitch Perfect, you’ll recognize Skylar Astin. He comes off a little snobby, but he’s the safe low-key comedy to his best friend, Miles Tellar. He’s more in your face and upfront about everything. They bounce off each other and their bickering is far funnier than any physical acts they do together. They aren’t very funny, but they manages to hold the film up just enough to keep it from being a complete disaster. Not to act like he did anything unbearable, but I am glad Justin Chon was passed out most of the movie and wasn’t given the lead screen time. I walked in thinking that and I just get a totally wrong vibe from the guy. Hope he stays away from movies. Just a weird peeve for me I guess.

Passing on this is totally acceptable. It never really tries to be risky. It’s a very tame film that seemed too marketed as raunchy. It’s a time killer you might enjoy while watching it, but after it ends, that’s it; the movie will probably never enter your thoughts again. A lot of times that can be a good thing. Such as the case here. I am sure a rewatch would only make it worse than it originally seemed to be.

Overall Score: 5/10

 

[Buzzman]

The First Time (2012)

The First Time is a coming of age teenage romance; it’s a pretty daring one at that. It relies heavily on dialogue and character chemistry. If either one doesn’t work, the film would have been a complete disaster. It has a few minor stumbles during its runtime, but winds up coming away clean and enjoyable. When I talk about its reliance on dialogue, I am not kidding; the film begins and ends with 20+ minutes of pure dialogue between its two leads and nobody else. You normally see this in intense dramas or some of the better mumblecore films of the last few years, but this is the first time I’ve seen it used in a teenage romance. Maybe it’s the attempt I enjoy more than the film itself, but needless to say, I liked it.

The story begins when two teenagers from separate high schools meet at a party on chance, and when they begin talking, connections are made that they don’t really know how to react properly. They are confused and intrigued by these feelings. It drives both of them crazy in their own defined ways; as an audience member, they nailed these impressions. At times it peaks into too much category, but the tone is generally realistic throughout. These feel like rare characters in real circumstances. There are none of those raunchy high school moments. (You know those generally over the top stupid ones that just don’t happen, they tend to stick out in real shitty teen comedies). It’s just nice to get a calm, slow paced, character driven teenage romance. You wouldn’t expect it when you look at the film from the outside view. All of this comes as a pleasant surprise to you.

The two leads, Britt Robertson and Dylan O’Brien are stellar here. They are given these roles that allow them to thrive far more than they are probably capable of. The films reliance on improve helps makes the nervousness and fumbling around feel natural and a part of the story. It’s funny to say that their inexperience in front of the camera is each other’s biggest strengths. It also helps they have a remarkable kind of chemistry that allows their long mannered conversations run smoothly and without interruption. It dips a bit when the two are thrown in and forced to interact with other characters, but that is expected when you introduced in the manner in which they were.

It’s pretty good film that almost nails it. Had they, maybe more than half a dozen people would have heard of and watched this. Being that they fell a bit short, this is a bubble film for many. Some of the viewers will feel it burst and probably think its shit, but a few may wind up enjoying the style and risks that went into making this film. For that alone, it’s almost worth the time.

Overall Score: 7/10

 

[Buzzman]

Stoker (2013)

There are times when you sit down and watch a film and within the first few minutes of it, have already decided that it’s going to be bad. Sometimes you end up being wrong, sometimes you end up being wrong, and sometimes you let that early opinion ruin the rest of the film for yourself. I thought to myself throughout the first forty minutes to not let that happen. As much as I hated the beginning maybe this thing can turn itself around. Then a shower scene happens that blows up the film and firmly solidified my stance. I was not wrong. It is indeed as bad as I was thinking.

The film really is a giant mess from the start. The plot takes forever to get going, its twists and turns are not very surprising nor effective. The characters stare into daylight pretending to see something you cannot. Things are supposed to be emotional that come off as nasty and rotten. It’s just all over the place. I don’t know how many times the film shoved something in your face and screamed “metaphor” at you. We get it. We can figure things out ourselves. Stop shoving close ups on all this stupid crap. The director, Chan-wook Park, came off looking like crap. He overdid so many things. Characters came out of nowhere, I’m talking movie distance walking where the character somehow appears when it’s physically impossible. You tend to think maybe you’re missing something here or the ending will erase these problems, but it comes and goes without so much as a hint to how these things happened. The last five minutes are some of the worst we have seen on screen all year.

The arcs given to each character is pretty brutal. They are meaningless, humanless characters that are dead on arrival. Mia Wasikowska has seemed to work herself into this respectable young actress list, but I don’t get why. I always find her to be underwhelming in these weird quirky indie movies that seem to give her respectability. Here she is a lifeless walking zombie. Her Uncle Charlie (Mathew Goode) comes off even worse. He’s just as lifeless as her, but is supposed to be all mysterious on whom he was and what kind of past came with him, but it’s pretty obvious of his intentions from the opening shots. The two are just dreadful to watch together. Other minor characters feel lost and undirected into poorly written situations and even worse conclusions. Acting was one of the many problems.

I was never really anticipating Stoker, but there was some part of me that figured the it could be worth seeing because this was the director of Oldboy, Thirst, and Lady Vengeance. Surely it was going to be average at worst? Nope. This won’t stop me from looking at future projects from him but it adds a heavy dose of caution. The real loser here is Wentworth Miller. Never again will I watch a film written by him. As bad as the direction and acting was, it was his terrible story that brought it all together. Screw him. He can go back to acting in television shows that stay on past their welcome. Stoker is an awful film that is just another in a long line that has been released this year. May can’t come fast enough.

Overall Score: 0/10

 

[Buzzman]

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013)

Somewhere inside of Burt Wonderstone there is a good movie to be found. Its biggest problem tends to come from its reliance and restraints from straying from Steve Carroll and not allowing the other characters to get more screen time and development. It spends so much time following him around, the others become invisible. It took the film so long to turn Carroll from a “dick” into that boy again who did magic because he loved it, not for the money. He’s not worth spending that much time on. In their limited time, some of the other characters brought some stuff you’d want to see, others did not. It became tedious to watch, which is never a good thing with a comedy. Downtime is deadtime towards the audience.

The funny bits come when actual magic is taking place on screen. Most of it is impossible to do, but it still is pretty fun t watch them go through these acts. In fact, when they show how the tricks are done, it’s at its funniest peak. You think to yourself that there is only one way to pull that trick off and seeing it done behind the scenes is just as you thought. It’s pretty funny. When the film gets into the show business aspect, the relationships between the characters, and lessons learned are all paint by the number responses. This became a chore to chug through. Their priorities were off and the end product was something people may have seemed to enjoy while it was on, but quickly realize afterwards it wasn’t very good nor funny.

I have trouble with Steve Carroll. I’ve never hated him, but sometimes his awkward stale punch lines just don’t make me laugh. The perfect role for him is a smaller more controlled character with a lot of heart. When he learns his lesson in this film, I wanted to see more of him, but they decided t keep him that over-the-top jerk most of the film. His partner Steve Buscemi, who has never done comedy, really doesn’t do anything here. He’s not bad, but he’s just there. No jokes, no story, and no point; bummer. Olivia Wilde is just a treat to look at. Her storyline was complete cliché bullshit, but you can handle that just to see her on screen. The nemesis of the film, Jim Carrey, in a satire performance isn’t very funny, but some of the stuff he does is so out there, you cannot help but laugh at it. I wish they would have focused more time on him and developing him ore rather than turning him into a one note douchebag. It’s a cast with potential, but failed to bring it this time around.

You can definitely see worse than Burt Wonderstone. In fact this looks like gold when you compare it to the movies this year. It’s insane the drought we are in. 2013 is still in deep hibernation with no signs of waking up. You really shouldn’t waste money on this unless you want to see a movie for the sake of seeing a movie. This is one comedy that could have been great, but barely clings to be average.

Overall Score: 5/10

 

[Palooza]

Literally have not seen 1 movie from 2013 yet. Side Effects is the only one I've had any interest in so far. I dunno if I'm gunna make it to 100 this year. The amount of shitty movies I've seen in the past 2 years have just totally crushed my spirit and any drive I have to catch up when it comes time for my 2013 binges.

 

[Buzzman]

Side Effects and Warm Bodies are the only movies worth watching. Everything else isn't even worth a DVD watch unless you're that bored. The good thing is that the indie lineup starting in the summer looks to be fantastic. This year's back half should be stronger than normal.

 

[Buzzman]

Chasing Amy (1997)

I’ve seen every film Kevin Smith has made except Chasing Amy. I really have no clue why I passed it over so often in the past. I have enjoyed and even loved some of his other films, so it really does puzzle me on why I skipped this one. I know he has some haters, but his early work and the stuff surrounding them make for some really good shit. For some strange reason, this film popped in my head and I couldn’t shake it, so I finally popped it in and gave it a go, completing my Kevin Smith watch.

When you trim it down and classify this film, it is a romance movie. There are bits of comedy, but for most of its runtime I found this to be a romance film. This caught me off guard. I’m so used to having Kevin Smith making me laugh; I didn’t think he could sneak in something like this. He still manages to do it his own way though. The story of a man falling for a dike, knowing what he wants she can’t give him. It’s a classic trope to gain the sympathy towards the main character. I feel for him; I wanted him to get those things. When he lays it all on the table and gets shot down, I feel as bad as him. Then things turn around quick. I found it to a pleasant surprise with how they handle the turnaround so quickly without making it feel cliché. It’s thoughtful, paced well, and placed in a tasteful manner. My biggest problem though comes from the films problem to keep conflict between them. It’s something I just didn’t think should’ve been a big deal, but what it leads to is pretty fucking funny and hurtful. It’s got a great conclusion because the placement of blame keeps flipping and you really don’t know who to fault or to root for. The audience can choose who they like rather than being forced into the decision.

First thing that popped in my head was how incredibly young Affleck looked. It’s weird that very little has changed about him, but looked likes he’s lived a lifetime already. He’s no different than any other male lead in an early Smith movie. They largely walk around spewing some good dialogue and benefiting from little direction. You’d never picture Affleck going through that blockbuster phase he did a few years after this. Watching Jason lee here makes me sad. He can be so good and so damn likeable, such as he was in this, but is stuck with making shit nowadays. His chemistry with Joey Lauren Adams was great. Speaking of her, she was great. She is shot in an “angel” sense of way and when she speaks you listen. She’s shot very special. Her few breakdowns showed me something in her. I don’t get why her career never turned out to be better than this. Must be the Kevin Smith effect.

It’s so hard to rank Kevin Smiths films. They are all so different and sentimental in their own ways. It’s crazy I waited so long to give this a shot. It has a few stumbles, but it’s the exact kind of romance I love nowadays. I know it’s not my favorite, but it’s definitely near the top. I think in the near future, a Kevin Smith marathon seems in order to help me decide its ranking. I look forward to the rewatch and it holds up well.

Overall Score: 8/10

 

[Buzzman]

Dead Man Down (2013)

Maybe it’s because I don’t watch a lot of live television, but I cannot recall seeing much, if any, ads supporting Dead Man Down. I do remember seeing some forced ones YouTube made you watch before some videos, but that’s about it. Normally when someone like myself, who follows movies way too closely, hasn’t heard a peep about a film, it’s generally a bad thing. Dead Man Down had absolute no buzz, opinions, or even reviews on the web until the day of its release. It’s crazy to think that. When you have Colin Farrell and Noomi Rapace in your movie and you’re not telling anyone, you must not have confidence in the quality. That’s the only explanation.

The quality indeed was something to be worried about. It’s not entirely terrible, but its entirely unoriginal. This is a revenge film and with it comes every single trope you would expect from one. It’s so generic; I bet you could tell me Colin Farrell’s story arc without even having to see it. The story of a man joining the very people he wants revenge on has been done so many times; you have to find a way to make it different than others. Dead Man Down attempts that by spending most of the movie setting up a character relationship between its two leads, but there introduction is so cheesy and the long monotonous looks that they try and pass as wordless dialogue becomes too repetitive. What they feel establishes chemistry between the two feels more like overlong shots of nothing. By the end when they decide to pump up the action, it turns into a generic one man wrecking tool that you only see in the movies. The film goes from bad to worse.

I have always been a fan of Colin Farrell. Even in his mediocre work. This is a case of not being able to place the blame on him. The film was going to be bad regardless, but he didn’t do anything to elevate it. He did his best and called it a day. Noomi Rapace on the overhand is a different story. I thought she was terrible but again it wasn’t her fault; it was the screenwriters. She plays this depressed woman who is a “monster” because of the scars on her face. A few things here. 1.) The scars look awfully stupid, They are tiny and barely noticeable. She still looks way too good to be called a monster. 2.) The way shes treated by the community is laughably bad and 3.) Her introduction to Farrell is such a stupid twist; it automatically puts a bad taste of her. These are two really talented actors who feel entirely wasted in this. Dominic Cooper gets the added bonus of humanity to his character. Because he’s in the dark of Farrell’s plans, you are able to feel some kinds of things towards him, but it’s not nearly enough to turn things around.

Dead Man Down is a terrible disappointment. It’s a thriller with no thrills, a romance with no couple, and a action film with five minutes of gunfire. It’s just a giant pile of identity crisis. Even if you were the biggest fans of anyone involved, I‘d tell you to avoid this. It really isn't worth the time of day. Too bad.

Overall Score: 2/10

 

[Buzzman]

Oz the Great and Powerful (2013)

Oz the Great and Powerful is a tale of two movies; both on opposite scales of the spectrum. While I walked in thinking it was going to b e complete trash, I actually really enjoyed the first hour or so of the film, where most of the film took place in Kansas and largely in black and white. The beginning of the film is full of fun and charming moments. I laughed a lot and was really enjoying myself. The characters were free to do whatever they wanted and in doing so, brought some good moments. If the entire movie was as good as the first forty minutes, we might have had the early year’s best film. Even when they first get to Oz, I found the story still had a lot to offer. His sidekick monkey was too funny.

While she is not the reason turned to hell, the movie really stopped being godo the minute we are introduced to Michelle Williams. The story turns into a cliché battle between good and evil, the laughs are delimited and turns all too over the top serious. It becomes a chore to see all of these “devious” tricks that are played on the characters. Because this is a prequel, it’s really constrained from the path, and things only seem to happen because they have to happen, otherwise you are changing the history of the original film. This is one of my biggest gripes with prequels. They always tend to pointless from a story standpoint.

James Franco is a roller coaster. At times I hate him, other times I love him. I really enjoyed him here. He doesn’t do anything worthy of recognition, but he does make me laugh a lot and play a toned down character compared to the rest. Michelle Williams. What can I say? She was long overdue to take a backseat and play a princess for once. It was strange seeing her all glamour up for a change. Rachael Weisz is a very forgettable villain, but the real true winner here is Mila Kunis. I really do enjoy her in most things, but she was truly terrible. One of the worst I’ve ever seen terrible. She is so over the top, so crazy, and so poorly developed, you want to leave the theater. In surprising turns, I found myself really enjoying the two CG characters, China Girl and the Monkey. They were the perfect combination of funny and sweet. Caught me off-guard a bit.

While Oz has some good things about it, it’s not too good. It is kind of elevated because of the absolute shit year we’ve been having. Hopefully this fairytale end is coming close to a end because they just haven’t been working out. I can’t think of a single one that was a critical hit. Too often, talented people jump onto these useless projects when their talents can be better spread somewhere else. Despite the score, if you did see something ni theaters now, you won’t really find better than this.

Overall Score: 5/10

 

[Buzzman]

Jack the Giant Slayer (2013)

Hollywood seemed to be banking on this film. I find it funny because it was originally going to be released last year. Had it did, it would have been an even worse bomb than John Carter. The two from a box office performance to the unknown leading characters, they are one in the same. To me this one didn’t do very much wrong to make it bad, but it never took any risks. It was just there with things moving along and eventually ended and you walked out. You’ll never think of it again and you probably rarely thought about it while you were watching it. It’s a totally forgettable film.

One of the things that took me by surprise was the tone of the first half. Things start of seriously. People are getting killed, things are a tiny bit scary, and you think you’re in for something different then you bargained for. Don’t get too excited though because it quickly elevates into a childish comedy where giants pick their noses, humans are rolled up into dough as pigs in a blanket, and giants are “slayed” in childish manners. It’s kind of crazy how quickly they turned. For giants, they sure are weak and easily defeated. When the situation calls for it, five humans can battle a giant in tug of war, giants can barely move around and be defeated by dizziness, and so on. It’s really bad. All of this comes without the title characters story. He loves the princess, but the hand of the king wants to take over the land. What’s weird is he’s going to be king so there was never a need to unleash the giants in the first place. It made no sense. The more I type and think about it, the film becomes worse and worse.

Nichols Hoult is in this. You may know him from About a Boy or First Class. So there’s that. He’s alright. Nothing like he was in Warm Bodies. Stanley Tucci has the villain is stupid. The most puzzling role is from Ewan McGregor. What is wrong with this guy? He has been really good in a lot of things but he somehow works a film like this into his resume every 3-4 years and makes you think of him as crap. He deserves it too because he’s asking for it by doing this crap. As from a CG standpoint, the giants looked good when they didn’t have to interact with real characters, but the minute the climb down the beanstalk, they look like shit. The budget was so high, yet they couldn’t even manage to make it look somewhat respectable.

Jack the Giant Slayer comes a week before Oz, and while both seemed to be targeted at the same audience, this is worse in every way. There are never any moments that elevate it from being poor. It stays that way its entire runtime. It’s the very definition of a failure. I don’t understand how they could let the budget to this get so high, but they were just asking for a flop. Hopefully this is the staple of the fairy tale trend. Maybe they need to start smaller and create character based fairy tale films rather than these big spectacle films they have failed time in and time out. Early 2013 strikes again.

Overall Score: 4/10

 

[Buzzman]

Snitch (2013)

Snitch isn’t a movie you would expect it to be. It has a cast of familiar faces that never hit it big all surrounding the big bulky Rock in a film involving taking down a drug cartel. Naturally you would assume Dwayne Johnson would just go in there, kick a bunch of ass, take down the kingpin and save his son, but it’s almost the exact opposite. It may not be the movie you thought it’d be, but it’s for the better. It takes the time to show things you wouldn’t normally get in a typical by the numbers action flick. I was pleasantly surprised by it.

For most of the film, it’s of Dwayne Johnson struggling to accomplish the things needed to free his son of drug charges. It’s weird seeing him get pushed around by higher forces and then get pushed again. That just doesn’t happen with him. It poses the question of how far would you go to save your family. The film has a bit of clichéd background arcs for some of its characters, but watching this one big drug bust slowly be worked together is far more entertaining than seeing a one man wrecking crew impossibly take down a Mexican Cartel. It’s when the film enters its third act things when things get a little shaky. It tones up the action a bit and it’s not very well done, but its length and consequences take an unexpected turn that may be anticlimactic, but at least sticks to its original formula. It’s a pretty solid thriller with some hiccups along the way that hold it back from truly being really good.

I am pretty impressed with Dwayne Johnson. For one of the first times (maybe even the first) he plays a normal everyday man that handles things more closely to a normal human rather than the action star he is. He showed signs that he could handle a drama without having to shoot somebody. I hope he tries to go away diverge more often in the future. The biggest treat comes from Jon Bernthal. Watching him here makes me miss Shane so fucking much; He killed that role. He brings a lot of heart and conflictions to the movie, playing a good guy stuck in a terrible spot. You almost end up rooting more for him than our lead hero. A shout out also has to go to Barry Pepper who I really enjoy, but rarely get to see. He had this just badass beard throughout the movie and later found out it was real. So fucking cool man.

Snitch is solid. That’s probably the best way to describe it. It has a lot of good characters tied into a decent story. It will probably be forgotten as the year keeps going on, but it’s a huge bright spot while we are in this terrible drought to start the year. I can see this being on a few overlooked films of the year lists. That’s the biggest compliment this film is going to get.

Overall Score: 7/10

 

[Warner2BruceTD]

Barry Pepper with the Daniel Day Lewis level method acting, growing a REAL BEARD.

 

[Goober]

Snitch (2013)


Overall Score: 7/10

Not sure if this is supposed to be a hipster ironic review or not...

 

[Palooza]

I actually heard Snitch wasn't too bad.

 

[Buzzman]

Barry Pepper with the Daniel Day Lewis level method acting, growing a REAL BEARD.

If you'd have seen the beard, you'd thoguht there was no way in hell it was real. The fucking thing is down to his chest.

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Oz the Great and Powerful (2013)

Oz the Great and Powerful is a tale of two movies; both on opposite scales of the spectrum. While I walked in thinking it was going to b e complete trash, I actually really enjoyed the first hour or so of the film, where most of the film took place in Kansas and largely in black and white. The beginning of the film is full of fun and charming moments. I laughed a lot and was really enjoying myself. The characters were free to do whatever they wanted and in doing so, brought some good moments. If the entire movie was as good as the first forty minutes, we might have had the early year’s best film. Even when they first get to Oz, I found the story still had a lot to offer. His sidekick monkey was too funny.

While she is not the reason turned to hell, the movie really stopped being godo the minute we are introduced to Michelle Williams. The story turns into a cliché battle between good and evil, the laughs are delimited and turns all too over the top serious. It becomes a chore to see all of these “devious” tricks that are played on the characters. Because this is a prequel, it’s really constrained from the path, and things only seem to happen because they have to happen, otherwise you are changing the history of the original film. This is one of my biggest gripes with prequels. They always tend to pointless from a story standpoint.

James Franco is a roller coaster. At times I hate him, other times I love him. I really enjoyed him here. He doesn’t do anything worthy of recognition, but he does make me laugh a lot and play a toned down character compared to the rest. Michelle Williams. What can I say? She was long overdue to take a backseat and play a princess for once. It was strange seeing her all glamour up for a change. Rachael Weisz is a very forgettable villain, but the real true winner here is Mila Kunis. I really do enjoy her in most things, but she was truly terrible. One of the worst I’ve ever seen terrible. She is so over the top, so crazy, and so poorly developed, you want to leave the theater. In surprising turns, I found myself really enjoying the two CG characters, China Girl and the Monkey. They were the perfect combination of funny and sweet. Caught me off-guard a bit.

While Oz has some good things about it, it’s not too good. It is kind of elevated because of the absolute shit year we’ve been having. Hopefully this fairytale end is coming close to a end because they just haven’t been working out. I can’t think of a single one that was a critical hit. Too often, talented people jump onto these useless projects when their talents can be better spread somewhere else. Despite the score, if you did see something ni theaters now, you won’t really find better than this.

Overall Score: 5/10

This movie was brutal.

James Franco phoned in this performance. Its flat and awful.
The women were bare bones. Michelle Williams is only mildly decent here, just giving off her usual "innocent" vibe...but nothing particularly distinguishable either.
Mila Kunis was so bad, in every aspect. Plus, her characters transformation couldn't have been more vapid. The Wicked Witch of the West was a boss in The Wizard of Oz. In this film, she's relegated to a bit part with a mild power.

I went into this with no expectations and it was worse than I could have imagined.

On the bright side...at least the CGI Oz looked nice.

I know this flick was not for me, its for kids...but so is The Wizard of Oz and that film is FULL of depth and cinematic promise so that an adult could absolutely appreciate it. This, was the exact opposite. It was like a running joke.

I'd hand this shit a Razzie right now and not feel like I gave it out too early by year's end.

 

[Buzzman]

While Oz isn't worth seeing, there are far worse films than it.